DIY Ripple Milk

This recipe is more of an addendum to my split pea milk recipe. I have had many more questions about it coming from Ripple drinkers. Some of the struggles were: separation, strong pea taste, watery taste and thickened texture. My original recipe was written for g-tube feedings and oral eaters with limited taste experiences. After fielding many of your questions, I set out to make a recipe that would work for Ripple drinkers. Please keep in mind, nothing we make at home can match the process that Ripple can produce in the lab. This recipe is creamier than my original recipe and does not separate. Hopefully my adjustments will make it more palatable. Please take note of the pictures above. The picture in the top right corner show 2 mason jars. The jar on the left is Ripple. The jar on the right is the DIY Ripple. Even after sitting overnight, it had not separated.

As always, my goal is not to just create and share new recipes but to educate: To give information not opinions. The pictures and notes are here to help you make the best choice for you.

Ingredients

1 cup of dry split peas (cooked in 3 cups of water)

4 large Medjool dates (3oz)

2-4 teaspoons of vanilla

1/4 cup of Sunflower oil (or oil of choice)

7-10 cups of water

Directions

Cooking the split peas:
Place 1 cup of dried peas into a bowl and cover with 3 cups of water. Let sit for 8 hours or overnight. Transfer the peas into a pot or into the pressure cooker. If cooking on the stove, cook peas about 1-1 1/2 hours or until the peas are completely soft and all of the water has been absorbed. Stir. Note: If using an electric pressure cooker, there is no need to soak the peas overnight. Select “beans/lentils” and adjust the time setting to 30 minutes. Once the timer goes off, allow the pressure to release naturally. This may take up to 15 minutes. Remove lid and stir. Note, if using the pressure cooker it is important NOT to use the quick release. The starch in peas is very light. Using the quick release up and out of the pressure cooker through the valve making a mess:

Making the milk:
Place 1 1/2 cups of cooked peas into the large (64oz) Vitamix container. Add 3 1/2-5 cups of water, dates, 1/2 of the oil (5 teaspoons) and vanilla and let stand (to soften the dates) for 30 minutes. Blend on High for 1 minute or use the “Smoothie” setting. Transfer first batch to mason jars and ice cube trays. Repeat the process with the remaining ingredients. If If the texture is not to your liking, you may want to run the milk through a nut milk bag to remove the starchy component of the peas.

Please keep in mind that, if you need it to have a higher caloric content, you will lose quite a few calories this way. The milk will keep fresh for about 4 days in the refrigerator. How quickly you use the milk will help you decide how much to freeze. After I use what is in the refrigerator, I take out only what I will use the next day and let it thaw overnight.

Food tips: Although sunflower oil is listed, I used grape seed oil because I didn’t have any and couldn’t find any. Other oils will work but I would hesitate using coconut oil. Coconut oil is solid at room temperature and could clog g-tubes if the milk separates when chilled. I put sunflower oil in the recipe because that is the oil listed on the Ripple label. I don’t know if it would taste any different since vegetable oil is pretty tasteless. I’m sure it’s better for you so use it if you can find it and afford it. Be sure to pit the dates before putting them into the blender. I don’t use pitted dates in my recipes because they are too dry and sometime the pits are not completely removed. Calories/cup are 141.5. The breakdown is in the Cronometer picture below. Because Ripple is making it’s milk from extracted pea protein and not whole peas, their protein content will be higher. Other than that, my DIY version of vanilla Ripple is pretty close if it is consumed unfiltered:

Time tip: If you have a pressure cooker, use it. Time and clean up can be cut in half that way. Freezing the extra milk in ice cube trays makes it easy to defrost exactly what you want. Each standard ice cube is 1 once.

Money Tip: Buying your peas from a bulk food store like Winco Foods is the best money saver. Most of their bulk food items are 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of those bought prepackaged. It also saves on waste because you only buy what you need.